Erie Times: Education notes – DiNicola, Scott honored for pre-K work
Ronald A. DiNicola and Nick Scott Jr. were honored by the Pennsylvania Association for the Education of Young Children at the organization’s annual dinner in Harrisburg on April 17.
The two Erie natives each received the first Vision Award presented to Pennsylvania leaders who have made significant contributions advocating on behalf of young children.
“The Northwest PA Pre-K for PA campaign has been a shining example of how leaders can rally behind a cause and make progress,” PennAEYC President Jodi Askins said.
“Ron and Nick signed on to lead with enthusiasm and are still fighting the good fight. Pre-K for PA and young learners who may benefit from their hard work are fortunate to have them on their team.”
Over the past year, Scott and DiNicola have co-chaired the Pre-K for PA Campaign in N.W. Pennsylvania, a statewide effort to expand access to Pre-K for all 3- and 4-year-olds in Pennsylvania. increased investment in Pre-K.
Read the full article here.
Southeast PA Prosecutors: Pay Now for Pre-K or Pay Later for Crime
KING OF PRUSSIA (April 29) – Southeast Pennsylvania prosecutors who are members of Fight Crime: Invest in Kids participated in a regional Pre-K for PA legislative breakfast today to release a new report –We’re The Guys You Pay Later – documenting how Governor Tom Wolf’s proposed $120 million state funding increase for high-quality pre-kindergarten programs could boost high school graduation rates, reduce the number of people who are incarcerated in Pennsylvania and lead to more than $350 million annually in Corrections and other cost savings to society over the lifetimes of the children served.
Delaware County District Attorney John J. Whelan, Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman, Philadelphia District Attorney R. Seth Williams, and Chester County District Attorney Thomas P. Hogan all participated in a panel discussion that focused on research documenting the impact of high-quality early childhood programs on educational and life outcomes for at-risk children and the resulting crime reduction.
Media Coverage:
The Kennett Times – Hogan, area DAs push for PreK to cut crime (run in 3 regional newspapers)
“I know from years of experience that we can’t simply arrest, prosecute and incarcerate our way out of our crime problems,” said Montgomery County District Attorney Risa Vetri Ferman. “We have to implement strategies that keep people from turning to crime in the first place. High-quality pre-k is one of those strategies.” Read full article.
Norristown Times-Herald -Philadelphia region district attorneys agree: Pay for pre-k education now, or prison later (run in 5 regional newspapers
“I think it speaks volumes as to the fact that all of us share how important it is for our children, for our community to invest in pre-k education,” said Delaware County District Attorney John J. Whelan. Whelan said he, Ferman, Williams and Hogan are all parents and understand that dilemma facing Pennsylvania. He explained that in Delaware County, his office prosecutes approximately 10,000 cases a year and an additional 4,000 cases in the county’s juvenile justice system. “Can we avoid this? I believe many of these cases can be avoided. Many of the adults, many of juveniles by investing in pre-k programs,” Whelan said. Read the full article.
NBC10 – Local DAs: Pay for Pre-K or Pay for Crime Later
A conference advocating for early education and Pre-K programs that proponents say could boost graduation rates and reduce the number of people who wind up incarcerated if every three and four-year-old had access. Watch the video.
The Intelligencer -Jim Cawley leads call for expansion of early learning
A Bucks County man shared the experience of his son to underline the value of early education for kids between ages 3 and 5.
The man said when he and his wife adopted a son, the child was behind socially, emotionally, academically and physically when compared to his peers. Read the full article.
CBS3 -Local DAs: “Pay Now For Pre-K or Pay Later For Crime”
Among the speakers was Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan. He says studies show money can be spent on children now when they’re young, or…“Or they’ll have to deal with me as a prosecutor later,” Hogan says, “when they’ve taken the wrong steps in life, when they haven’t had the right support and they’re in the criminal justice system, and that’s too late.” Hogan compares quality pre-K education to immunizations. “When we’re out with police, you will run into three or four-year-old kids that are in a family, and the police will say to you, based on their background, they’re going to end up in the criminal justice system someday.” Read the full article.
Lancaster Newspapers Editorial: Let’s be Fair, and Smart: Fund Preschool Education
THE ISSUE
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf’s call to boost preschool education funding by $120 million statewide received Republican support Monday at a Head Start center in Lancaster. Wolf wants to boost overall spending to $256.5 million for the 2015-16 school year, up from $136.5 million this school year — an 88 percent increase that includes $100 million more for Pennsylvania’s Pre-K Counts and $20 million more for Head Start. Pennsylvania Pre-K Counts is a state program for children ages 3 through prekindergarten considered at risk of school failure and with incomes up to 300 percent of the federal income poverty level. Head Start is a federal program for families at or below the poverty level of $24,250 in annual income for a family of four.
Everyone seems to agree that high-quality preschool education is a net plus for society.
Then-Gov. Tom Corbett made a boost in preschool funding a selling point during his unsuccessful re-election bid last year.
Mission: Readiness, a coalition of more than 500 retired senior military leaders, supports preschool education as part of its focus on what it considers a serious national security problem. “Currently, more than 70 percent of 17- to 24-year-olds in the U.S. cannot serve in the military, primarily because they are too poorly educated, too overweight, or have a serious criminal record,” is how the bipartisan group defines the problem on its website.
Lancaster County District Attorney Craig Stedman and Sheriff Mark Reese and state Rep. Bryan Cutler of Peach Bottom, all Republicans, were on hand for Monday’s event to support the governor’s call for more preschool funding.
Both Stedman and Reese consider spending on preschool education an investment in crime prevention.
For those who did not attend preschool, or even kindergarten, these calls can be hard to understand.
Why, when many adults grew up just fine without it, is preschool education such a priority today?
One answer is the changing nature of employment. The jobs of the future — and even the present, including many military professions — require higher academic skills. Today’s complicated technology demands more advanced reading skills, and the teamwork environment of our complex, global economy rewards those with the ability to communicate effectively.
Another is the rising percentage of children in poverty.
According to an analysis of 2013 Census data by the Southern Education Foundation, 51 percent of children in prekindergarten through 12th grade are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches.
While poverty does not automatically lead to lower language skills, it does have an impact. Children living in poverty have fewer books in their homes, and therefore fewer opportunities to develop language skills essential to reading and writing.
Read the entire article here.
CBS 3: Local DA’s: “Pay Now for Pre-K or Pay Later for Crime”
By Jim Melwert
KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. (CBS) — There was a show of support Wednesday morning for the expansion of “Pre-K” and early childhood education, as advocates were joined by the district attorneys from Philadelphia, Montgomery, Delaware and Chester Countries at the Double Tree Hotel in King of Prussia.
Among the speakers was Chester County District Attorney Tom Hogan. He says studies show money can be spent on children now when they’re young, or…
“Or they’ll have to deal with me as a prosecutor later,” Hogan says, “when they’ve taken the wrong steps in life, when they haven’t had the right support and they’re in the criminal justice system, and that’s too late.”
Hogan compares quality pre-K education to immunizations.
“When we’re out with police, you will run into three or four-year-old kids that are in a family, and the police will say to you, based on their background, they’re going to end up in the criminal justice system someday.”
Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams says study after study shows one of the best ways to prevent crime is quality early childhood education.
“People don’t expect DAs talking about early childhood education, like ‘What are you a social worker?’ I am the social worker of last resort,” he says, “I am the prosecutor.”
Read the entire article here.
Philly.com Op-Ed: Expanding Preschool will Help Children and the City
By Elliot Weinbaum
and Sharon Easterling
In Philadelphia, many are working hard to improve our schools. There is significant work to be done if we are to give our young people the best possible opportunity to become active and successful citizens, and we need to begin with our youngest learners.
Consider a few important facts. According to the Reinvestment Fund’s childcaremap.org, only 15 percent of about 100,000 child-care seats in Philadelphia are rated as being high-quality, with three or four stars, according to the state’s Keystone Stars rating system. Of the remainder, more than half do not participate in the state’s certification or rating systems, and more than 30 percent are at the lower quality ratings.
If we look at individual neighborhoods, the landscape can be even bleaker. Childcaremap.org shows that several neighborhoods, some serving more than 1,000 children under the age of 5, have no child-care centers with a rating of three or four stars. In a city with the highest poverty rates among large American cities, less than one-third of our 3- and 4-year-olds have access to publicly funded, high-quality pre-K.
Why should we care? Because we know that early-education opportunities help people live better lives. Studies such as those by the Nobel Prize-winning economist James Heckman indicate that children who miss out on early education often struggle to catch up to the academic, professional, and personal success experienced by their peers. The work of Harvard education professor David Deming has shown that children in an early-childhood program are less likely to demonstrate learning disabilities later in life, more likely to graduate from high school, and less likely to be in poor health as adults.
What does this mean for Philadelphia? There are about 12,000 kindergartners in our city. The overall rate of special education in Philadelphia would suggest that almost 14 percent of these students will need special-education services. An evaluation by Pre-K Counts, a statewide program, suggests that if every child had access to high-quality early education, the special-education rate would be reduced to less than 5 percent.
Read the entire op-ed here.
